Yellow Envelope
by Dru619
Summary: Mulder leaves Scully a card.


Hello everyone,

This is my first X-Files fic. It doesn't really have a specific timeline as to when it takes place. Some dialogue could be interpreted as spoilers for the 1st movie and the pilot episode. The things in italics are things that have already occurred. Words in BOLD are from the card. You'll understand when you read :

I **DO NOT OWN **nor claim to own Scully and Mulder. I also do not own any of the dialogue used here that is from previous episodes of the show.

The card is also based off of a card I spotted at Hallmark today and I don't own the general gist of that either XD

Enjoy!

-Dru

Her chest is congested so bad she can hardly breathe. Wisps of unwashed hair fall into her face as she sits up in bed, neck sticky with sweat and legs pining with dull aches. The green numbers on the clock taunt a painful 3:42 AM, only 2 hours since she had last attempted to go to sleep. Sighing with defeat she swings her reluctant legs out of bed and drags her fever-ridden body into the kitchen. She finds it hard to keep her stuffed head upright.

Once in the kitchen she awaits for her eyes to get better adjusted to the dark. She finds that he's left the light over the stove on and it brings pleasant warmth to her belly, empty as a result of her horrible appetite this week. She swears she hears a faint whisper of her name.

"Scully."

She turns around but no ones there. Nothing but the half empty refrigerator and a day old newspaper spread out over the kitchen counter. Even in the dark Scully notices something that looks out of place. Visible underneath the newspaper is a triangle of yellow color that sticks out like a sore thumb against the gray and black print. Scully is unsure why but she waits a beat before investigating. The rustling of newspaper sounds magnified to her in the otherwise quiet kitchen. It's an envelope addressed to her. Addressed to her in a scrawl she knows all too well.

**Scully.**

She waits again, putting the envelope down on top of the jumbled newspaper. She tries taking a breath only to find that her stuffed nose has made this extremely difficult. Instead she fumbles around in her cabinets until she finds a glass and fills it all the way to the top with water from the sink. She drinks slowly, knowing if she was in full health she would have been able to drink the entire glass in one go without problem. She sets the glass in the sink and picks the envelope up again.

**Scully.**

She quietly pads back to the bedroom.

The card has a light blue background and 4 squares laid out like a comic strip. The 2 people starring in the card are stick figures, the only thing deciphering their gender is a pink and triangle shaped dress on the girl. The boy is in the shape of a darker blue square. Scully reads the first square.

**Boy meets girl.**

_The butterflies in her stomach are very prominent today. She supposes it makes sense though. She's heard wild stories about 'Spooky Mulder'. A gentle knock on the door._

_"Nobody down here but the FBI's most unwanted," is the answer. _

Scully remembers that day so well. Almost as if it had happened yesterday.

_"Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?"_

She grins.

_"So…who did you tick off to get this detail, Scully?"_

_Scully hesitates but only for a moment._

_"Actually I'm looking forward to working with you. I've heard a lot about you."_

_"Oh really? I was under the impression you were here to spy on me."_

That day. Oh man that day. Some how she knew, knew at that very moment that Fox Mulder was going to change her life forever. That day had been the beginning. The beginning of Mulder and Scully.

Scully coughed a few times, irritated at the constant tickle in her throat. She moved to the next square.

**Girl wants to run like the wind (she's had her share of heartache)**

_'Spooky Mulder'._

_"That's spooky," Scully would sometimes note, pun completely unintentional. Mulder would only grin._

_"That is my name."_

_She finds herself wanting to be around him all the time. His voice, his demeanor, his smell, his walk. It's all very intriguing to Scully. She used to think the X-Files weren't for her. Kept an open-mind, ready to leave when things got too improbable for her to handle. Or at least that's what she kept telling herself. She knew the real reason._

_She was afraid of getting attached._

Scully shakes her head a little. She'll admit this is a little out of character for Mulder. A card. An easily interpreted as _cute _card.

**But she stays (she finds boy has had his share of heartache too)**

_Samantha Mulder. Abducted at the age of 8. Mulder did it all for her._

_"It's because of your sister isn't it?"_

_Some cases just start like that. Scully hates doing it and often times the words leave her mouth before she can stop them. Sometimes Mulder is okay with it. Sometimes he even agrees with her. But sometimes she sees she has obviously hurt him. _

_"You of all people should know that not everything I do is linked back to one childhood experience," he growls at her. Scully's heart aches. She often times wonders if they'll every truly know what happened to Samantha Mulder. She wants to believe that she's alive._

_She wants to believe._

The small comic is coming to an end already. Scully feels wrought with emotions but she attributes it to the fever and dehydration. The stick figures are holding hands now.

**The girl stays with the boy and they learn to trust (and to love)**

_"You saved me! As difficult and as frustrating as it's been sometimes, your goddamned strict rationalism and science have saved me a thousand times over! You've kept me honest; you've made me a whole person. I owe you everything, Scully, and you owe me nothing. I don't know if I want do this alone. I don't even know if I can and if I quit now, they win."_

_You've made me a whole person._

_The words run through her head a thousand times over._

_You owe me nothing._

_Scully wants to touch him. She does, gently. He nuzzles her face and she knows what's about to happen. But it doesn't happen._

_Pain shoots through her body._

Scully opens the card, unable to concentrate on her shallow breaths any more.

**So they stay and they live…and that's a good thing**

_"You don't look well Scully."_

_"Why thank you Mulder," Scully trills sarcastically, feeling faint and weak all over. She sits on her sofa and buries her face into her hands. It's nearing one in the morning. _

_"You stay here and rest then. I'll go alone."_

_Scully has zero energy left to argue._

_"Okay." Her voice comes out wispy and pathetic sounding. Mulder readily takes her hand and pulls her up from the sofa. Without any real exchange of words Mulder helps Scully into bed and waits for a few minutes. She looks up at him, her eyes glowing dull with exhaustion._

_"You sure you'll be okay Mulder? I'd really like to do anything I can to help you solve this case."_

_"Sleep Scully."_

_His fingers find their way to her collarbone. He rubs gently before bending down to kiss her forehead. "Sleep."_

_He closes the door with a soft click. After a small moment of debate he pulls the Hallmark card out of his pocket. The envelope shines obnoxiously yellow at him. He walks into the kitchen and out of habit flips on the light over the stove. He lets out a long held in breath, eyes traveling to the newspaper he had laid out earlier. He sticks the envelope underneath, revealing a small inch of the corner. _

_She'll find it or she won't, Mulder decides._

_He eases quietly out the front door._

Scully feels like crying but she pretends it's not Mulder's card doing it.

**..and that's a good thing. **

There's more familiar scrawl underneath.

**_I agree with this thing Scully. I saw it and I agreed with it. I agree that it's a good thing. _**

**_Anyway…I'm sorry I got you sick. I'll see you in the morning. I promise not to forget the coffee this time (or the Tylenol)_**

**_-Mulder_**

Scully smiles for what feels like the first time all week. She smiles and holds Mulder's card for a few more minutes, studying the stick figures on the front and remembering. The clock hits 4 AM and she knows she'll see him again very soon. She tucks the card back away and lays down, her head aching just a little less now.

Mulder finds her in the morning with the yellow envelope still clutched in her hand.


End file.
